Florida Panthers trio returns after long absences

Snowstorm delays game but Skille, Upshall, Bergenheim return

January 20, 2012|By Harvey Fialkov, Sun Sentinel

CHICAGO — Neither rain, sleet or especially an all-day snowstorm that caused their team bus to be late and the game against the Blackhawks to be delayed for 30 minutes could stop three eager Panthers from returning to action after long injury-related absences.

The Panthers, nearing full strength for the first time in two months, started three forwards, Scottie Upshall, Jack Skille and Sean Bergenheim, who had been out for the past 30, 13 and 12 games respectively.

Panthers coach Kevin Dineen, who finally has healthy options to either bench or start deserving players chose to sit out a slumping Mike Santorelli and a banged-up Matt Bradley (bruised eye), to try to inject energy into a tailspinning team that has dropped nine of their last 12 games.

"It's like getting guys called up from the AHL,'' Dineen said after morning skate. "It helps so much with energy and that kind of enthusiasm. It's important as we push to that long [All-Star] break we'll have starting next week.

"We've got a lot in our plates over the next nine periods or 9-plus, but it will certainly be nice to have that energy and health in the lineup.''

Kris Versteeg, one of five ex-Hawks on the Panthers from their 2010 Stanley Cup championship team, said getting so many players back at the same time is like starting over again.

"It brings you a little life,'' Versteeg said. "But it's almost like a whole new game plan; guy's ice-time changes, power play changes, new lines. It's like you're playing with a new team every game. We're trying to adjust and we've been doing fairly well at it.''

Versteeg touched by return

Of the five Panthers with Blackhawks ties, Versteeg was the only one who hadn't been back to the United Center since the Stanley Cup season, so he got a bit choked up during morning skate when he looked up and saw the championship banner hanging in the rafters.

"It's special to look up there and see something that was accomplished by a bunch of guys who played hard every night for each other,'' said Versteeg, who sports a tatoo with the date (6-9-2010) the Blackhawks clinched the Cup.

Brian Campbell and Tomas Kopecky returned to the arena for the first time since signing with the Panthers in the offseason. John Madden, who won two Cups with the Devils and one with Chicago, played here last season with the Wild.

Skille only played six games that season and didn't get his name engraved on the Cup.

"It's fun playing in that barn but it's no different, we need to put together some wins here,'' Campbell said.

Odds and ends

Panthers rookie defenseman Erik Gudbranson was given morning skate off to rest while dealing with flu-like symptoms. …

Forward Michael Repik cleared waivers and will report to their San Antonio affiliate in the AHL.

Too many almosts for Santorelli

Dineen finally had enough healthy bodies to bench Santorelli, who has just five goals and seven points with a minus-9 after scoring 21 goals last season.

"I'm not a message guy,'' Dineen said. "He had an opportunity on the power play [Wednesday] and almost gets possession. … Then on a 40-second shift the puck comes off the board and he almost got it … and it ends up a 1:50 shift in your own zone.

"It's getting away from almost and getting on the winning side in the little areas.''